Dynamic Motions of Piled Floating Pontoons Due to Boat Wake and Their Impact on Postural Stability and Safety

Piled floating pontoons are public access structures that provide a link between land and sea. Despite floating pontoons being frequented by the public, there is limited data available to coastal or maritime engineers detailing the dynamic motions (acceleration and rotation) of these structures under wave action and the impact of these motions on public comfort and safety to inform their design. This contribution summarises results from a set of laboratory-scale physical model experiments of two varying beam width piled floating pontoons subjected to boat wake conditions. Observed accelerations and roll angles were dependent on beam-to-wavelength ratio (B/L), with the most adverse motion response observed for B/L similar to 0.5. Internal mass of the pontoon played a secondary role, with larger mass structures experiencing lower accelerations for similar B/L ratios. Importantly, these new experimental results reveal the complex interaction between the piles and pontoon that result in peak accelerations more than six times the nominated operational safe motion limit of 0.1g. Root mean square (RMS) accelerations were more than three times the nominated comfort limit (0.02g) and angles of rotation more than double what would be perceived as safe (6 degrees) for the boat wake conditions tested. The frequency of acceleration also suggests patrons standing on these platforms are likely to experience discomfort and instability. Laboratory results are compared against a series of field-scale experiments of pontoon motion response and patron feedback. The dynamic motion response of pontoons tested in both field-scale and laboratory experiments compared well.

Automated summary

Floating pontoons play an important role in connecting land and sea, but there is limited data available to inform their design in terms of dynamic motion and the impact on public comfort and safety. This study conducted laboratory experiments on two types of piled floating pontoons, revealing that the motion response is dependent on the beam-to-wavelength ratio and the internal mass of the pontoon. The results showed that the interaction between the piles and the pontoon can lead to acceleration peaks more than six times the safe limit, as well as significant angles of rotation. These findings suggest that patrons standing on these pontoons may experience discomfort and instability.